1444, Byzantium Resurrects

Chapter 330 Carlos Faction
Northeast of the Thracian Plain, on the shores of the Black Sea, is the city that the world longs for, the city that the world longs for, Constantinople.

The year 1473 was already halfway through and Constantinople was welcoming another vibrant summer. The city had enjoyed twenty years of peace and would continue to enjoy it.

In recent years, the Constantinople government, which has rapidly become wealthy in the trend of industrial and commercial development, has begun to carry out large-scale construction around the capital. As the population has increased, the main urban area of ​​Constantinople has become very crowded, and the workshop area in the Lycus River Valley has become increasingly bloated, occupying an increasingly larger area, and the noise and pollution have become increasingly serious, bringing a series of problems to the lives of citizens and the management of the city.

In order to resolve the contradiction between population and land, the Eastern Roman Empire began to imitate the kuriyas of the Seljuk Empire and the Ottoman Empire, building a series of building complexes on the flat land in the suburbs to break free from the constraints of city walls and alleviate the living pressure in the main urban areas.

These building complexes are generally centered around a church, with hospitals, schools, theaters, baths and markets distributed around the church, providing a full range of services from spiritual to physical to the people who come here.

In order to speed up construction and reduce construction pressure, the building complexes in the suburbs of Constantinople were generally converted from local large manors and defensive castles. These towns were also called "Acropolis", although most of the Acropolis no longer served as a military defense function.

Currently, Constantinople has a total of three Acropolises, all of which were expanded from the original large buildings. They are the Citadel of St. John, the Citadel of St. Nicholas and the Citadel of St. Joseph, named after the patron saints of wisdom, commerce and laborers respectively.

It is worth mentioning that after the Eastern Roman Empire promulgated the "Regulations for the Protection of Orthodox Christians", the Orthodox Church canonized Joseph, the adoptive father of Jesus, as a saint and designated him as the patron saint of workers. March 3 of each year was set as the Feast of Saint Joseph. All workers had a day off, and priests would rush into various workshops, forcing workers to participate in religious celebrations and prohibiting workshops from opening, including Muslim slaves.

St. Joseph's City is the largest of the three David Cities. It is located next to the coastal road from Constantinople to Thessalonica and is based on a large royal estate. Due to its cheap land price and proximity to Constantinople and Thessalonica, many private workshops have begun to set up their factories here. The Constantinople Municipal Government also plans to spend five years relocating heavily polluting workshops such as textile mills, iron smelters, and food processing plants in the Lycus River Valley to St. Joseph's City, leaving only the less polluting luxury workshops.

The Citadel of St. John was the first Acropolis to be completed and also the most picturesque Acropolis. It is nestled against the mountains and beside the lake, and has an elegant environment. The entire large castle has exactly four towers, which are allocated to four universities. Other infrastructure is also under construction, which will include various examination halls, research institutes and libraries. It is expected to become the cultural center and scientific hub of the Eastern Roman Empire in the future.

St. Nicholas Mall is the closest Acropolis to Constantinople. It mainly engages in commerce and service industries, has the largest flow of people, and the most import and export goods. Various markets, bathhouses, restaurants, teahouses and cafes are arranged around the Church of St. Nicholas. Middle-class citizens in nearby towns like to come here in their spare time to enjoy life.

In order to promote personnel exchanges between the main urban area of ​​Constantinople and the Acropolis, the Eastern Roman Queen Isabella presided over the establishment of the first public carriage company in the Eastern Roman Empire. The Constantinople Municipal Government ordered dozens of large wide-compartment four-wheeled carriages from the Royal Carriage Workshop to connect each district of Constantinople and the three Acropolises, and to depart in an orderly manner according to fixed routes and fixed times.

This wide-compartment four-wheeled carriage uses the latest rubber tires and is pulled by four strong horses. It can carry two coachmen and ten passengers. Its biggest advantage is that it is cheap. The highest fare is only one-fifteenth of that of an ordinary horse-drawn carriage, so even the lowest-income citizens can afford it.

Public transportation has been widely praised since its establishment. The commuting time of citizens has been greatly shortened. Many workers can take the bus to St. Joseph Industrial City in the morning and return in the evening. They can also buy some household items at St. Nicholas Mall on the way. They can enjoy the prosperous life in the city without delaying work.

The cost of public transportation will not be too high and may occasionally require government subsidies, but the benefits are obvious, with commodity markets flourishing and consumer desire increasing.

Of course, there are still some problems with the expansion of Constantinople. Due to the inability to build a cross-sea bridge, the Chalcedon area across the sea has always been isolated and is only responsible for providing agricultural and pastoral products. Although the Chalcedonians are also residents of Constantinople, it is obviously difficult for them to enjoy the treatment of Constantinople.

Among the several districts of Constantinople, the Central District looks down on the Golden Horn District, the Golden Horn District looks down on the Lykas District, the Lykas District looks down on the Galata District, and the above districts all look down on the Chalcedon District.

Regional discrimination will always exist and will never disappear, and no one can do anything about it.

It was the Feast of the Ascension of Jesus, and the entire Eastern Roman Empire was immersed in festive joy. On the outskirts of Constantinople, in the bustling St. Nicholas Mall, two nobles stepped down from an ordinary carriage and entered the bustling neighborhood.

"How does it feel, Alonso?"

The younger nobleman looked at his companions with a smile. Both of them had brown hair and long hooked noses. They looked quite similar in appearance and were obviously brothers.

"It feels great, Gonzalo."

Alonso stepped on the smooth and flat stone road beneath his feet and sighed sincerely.

"I have been to many big cities, but they are just small villages compared to Constantinople."

"Haha, I told you a long time ago that if you come here just to meet the queen, you will definitely regret it for the rest of your life."

Gonzalo patted his brother on the shoulder.

Alonso smiled and walked towards the market with Gonzalo.

Alonso was Gonzalo's elder brother, Count of Cordoba in the Kingdom of Castile, and a famous nobleman in Western Europe. In the internal struggle of the Kingdom of Castile, he supported Prince Alfonso and opposed his illegitimate daughter Juana.

Now, the situation in Castile became increasingly tense. Alonso, as a representative of the southern nobles, came to Constantinople to meet with Queen Isabella, hoping to discuss a solution.

"If you are not in a hurry, after we finish visiting Constantinople, I can take you to see Pamukkale in Anatolia. It is a really great place. I stayed there for a long time. There are many noble ladies who like me. I can introduce them to you -"

"Okay, okay, I'm not interested in this."

Alonso quickly interrupted his brother, feeling a little annoyed by his debauchery.

"Since so many noble ladies like you, why don't you get married quickly?"

"You've already become an earl, but you still plan to live alone for the rest of your life?"

Alonso looked at Gonzalo with some dissatisfaction.

"Who said that? I already have quite a few illegitimate children. One is in Sochi, one is in Anatolia, and the other..."

Gonzalo tried hard to recall, while Alonso's eyes became increasingly gloomy.

"Last month in Pamukkale, a noble girl who was also on vacation wanted to marry me. She was an orphan of the Giustiniani family. Her family was very rich. I almost fell in love with her."

Gonzalo said with a grin.

"Humph, why don't you accept it? Even if you get married, you won't restrain yourself, right?"

Alonso said angrily.

"No, I have principles. The Genoese family suffered heavy casualties in the Battle of Constantinople. Three heirs died on the city walls, and she is the only orphan left in the younger generation."

Gonzalo shook his head.

"I can't do this."

"Forget it, let's stop talking nonsense. Since we are in San Nicola Mall, we have to try the special foods here. You can't eat them in Cordoba!"

Gonzalo quickly shook off the past and pulled his brother into the crowd.

"We are wearing ordinary clothes and we don't have any guards with us. Aren't you afraid of any accidents?"

Alonso hesitated.

"No, no, Constantinople is the safest city. Many nobles and wealthy businessmen from Italy like to come here to spend money. The Royal Mounted Police are very fierce, and everyone is very rich. There is no need to use violence, and no one dares to use violence."

Gonzalo pushed his way through the crowd and entered a snack street.

"The business model has only become popular recently, with food cooked to order and everything available. This is a pleasure for citizens, but it cannot be enjoyed in a castle."

Gonzalo came to a pancake stand and studied the Greek words on the sign.

"Found it, Mexican Taco."

Gonzalo rubbed his hands happily and asked the boss for two of the most expensive tacos.

"A specialty of the New World, fried corn tortillas filled with vegetables, grilled meat, fish and shrimp, and topped with a variety of sauces."

Gonzalo took the two tacos from the boss and handed the larger one to Alonso.

"It is said that this was the first food our father Columbus ate in Tlaxcala."

Alonso took the burrito, but his eyes were fixed on the boss' face.

"Indigenous?"

Alonso was a little surprised and a little contemptuous.

"Yes, the natives. Many of the native nobles in the New World were deceived into Constantinople. The emperor granted them titles and manors. They brought many people with them. The emperor was not willing to let them stay together, so he separated them. This should be one of them."

Gonzalo nodded.

"No matter where you go, you wear a cross around your neck. Only the natives like to do that."

“You actually allow indigenous people to do business on the streets?”

Alonso shook his head in confusion.

"What nobleman is he a subject of?"

"The emperor's subjects, the citizens of Rome, do not belong to any aristocracy."

Gonzalo said.

"Since he has been granted citizenship, no noble will seize his property. After paying taxes, his legal income is private property, sacred and inviolable."

"It's just incredible."

Alonso muttered, shaking his head.

"What will the nobles think?"

"The Eastern Empire doesn't have nobles like Castile. Nowadays, it's hard for nobles to get rich just by relying on land income. Most nobles like to start some industrial and commercial businesses. This idea is beneficial to them."

Gonzalo explained as he munched on his taco.

"Try it now, it won't taste good if it's cold."

Alonso looked around and saw that everyone was immersed in the prosperous and lively atmosphere. They didn't care about aristocratic etiquette. He took a big bite and marveled.

"Good stuff, what kind of meat is this?"

"Human flesh."

Gonzalo looked at Alonso seriously.

“This is an indigenous specialty, you must try it.”

Alonso spat out a mouthful of food and looked at Gonzalo angrily.

"Well, it's turkey."

Seeing that his brother was still so serious, Gonzalo shrugged in boredom.

"Tortillas filled with human flesh were a delicacy reserved for the Aztec nobility. Commoners could not eat them."

“How barbaric.”

Alonso snorted and stuffed the rest of the taco into his mouth.

"Come on, let me take you to see the handicrafts."

Gonzalo quickly finished his food and took Alonso out of the snack street and came to the central square of San Nicola Mall.

"Look, there's a public carriage station, a post office, St. Nicholas Church, a big bath house, and the theater at the outermost. A few days ago, a circus performed here..."

Gonzalo introduced things as he walked, and Alonso looked at them and exclaimed in admiration.

"It's unbelievable. No wonder many wealthy people I know like to come to the East Empire."

"In Castile, even Seville is far inferior to half of Constantinople."

Gonzalo nodded with some pride and continued walking.

On the side of the road, a child selling newspapers was shouting loudly.

"Constantinople Weekly! Brazilian mining companies are recruiting explorationists to go to Black Gold City to explore for mineral veins!"

"New Thrace is expanding rapidly. An expedition has crossed the Vaal River to establish the Transvaal colony!"

"The Royal Exploration Team discovered a platinum vein in New Thrace, and phosphate mines were discovered in the Tebessa Mountains in Africa! The sulfuric acid plant and fertilizer plant were completed one after another, and the shares of the Liximei Fertilizer Company skyrocketed!"

"City of Learning Monthly, Master Verrocchio's most valued disciple, Leonardo from the small town of Vinci, accepted the royal employment and began to oversee the renovation of the Grand Palace!"

Alonso listened to the contents of the newspaper and felt his eyes were opened.

"A fertilizer factory?"

Alonso looked at Gonzalo.

"Yeah, what those scholars came up with seems to have found a fertilizer that can be produced in factories. I don't quite understand it."

Gonzalo was uninterested and shook his head.

After a long period of research, the Eastern Roman Empire finally succeeded in completing all the fragments of early fertilizer technology in 1473, and through unremitting experiments, it finally produced the first fertilizer in human history, superphosphate.

This type of fertilizer has the lowest technological content and was the first to be produced in factories in the original time and space. Although the technological content is low, the required raw materials are relatively difficult to find. The most important phosphate and platinum mines are extremely unevenly distributed around the world, and are almost completely non-existent in the empire.

Eighty percent of the world's phosphate rock is distributed along the coast of North Africa, especially Morocco, and seventy percent of the world's platinum is distributed in southern Africa, especially South Africa.

Of course, for the Eastern Roman Empire, which longed for the world, this was not a problem. In the trend of the great voyages of discovery, the Eastern Roman Empire had the ambition of never setting sun and dominating the world.

"arrive."

Gonzalo stopped outside a jewelry store. The window of the store was made of glass, so he could clearly see the wide variety of gems in the store.

When the young and beautiful female employee saw the two men dressed in luxurious clothes, her eyes lit up and she quickly greeted them.

"New Thracian diamonds, Guinean ivory, Congolese emeralds, Venezuelan rubies, Romanian black amber..."

Gonzalo obviously knew something about these luxury items and introduced them to his brother.

"Justinian once gave me a spring-loaded musket, made of pure silver and inlaid with diamonds and rubies. If you like, I will ask the craftsmen to make one for you..."

Alonso's eyes swept over the precious gems, and his heart was filled with envy and shock.

"Gonzalo, how about we buy a diamond and give it to the queen?"

Alonso looked at Gonzalo inquiringly.

"Haha, guess who has the best diamond? The rest are just inferior ones."

Gonzalo's words made the female clerk a little embarrassed, but she still looked at them with a smile.

After choosing for a while, Alonso bought a few medium-priced gems and prepared to take them back as gifts for his wife and daughter.

Walking out of the jewelry store, Alonso looked around the crowded streets, carrying the exquisite jewelry bag.

"It's almost time. Shall we go meet the Queen?"

Gonzalo suggested.

"Well, it's a great place. In just thirty years, Constantinople has returned to where it belongs," Alonso said with great satisfaction.

"Not only that, Constantinople during the Macedonian period was not so prosperous. History may not remember you and me, but it will definitely remember this great era."

Gonzalo smiled and took Alonso to the carriage shop.

……

In a castle in the Grand Palace, Isabella and Constantine sat in the study. Isabella was desperately dealing with the piles of official documents, while Constantine was stumbling over and reciting today's homework. His eyes wandered, and he looked out the window from time to time, enviously looking at Anastasius who was catching butterflies on the grass and Carlos who was quietly watching the sunset.

The main hall of the Grand Palace was under construction and the royal family moved here.

"Thucydides, an ancient Greek writer, historian and war scientist, author of "History of the Peloponnesian War", was born in Thrace——"

Constantine spoke in Latin, struggling to find the Latin words in his mind.

"It's Athens! Not Thrace. Their family only owns the mining rights in Thrace!"

Isabella scolded mercilessly.

"I understand, mother."

Constantine whispered.

"Continue, next one, the transportation hub in the interior of the Balkans."

Isabella wrote down a few lines and without looking up, pulled out the next document.

"Constantinople, Thessalonica—"

"Inland! Inland!"

Isabella frowned and tapped her son's head.

"Larissa, Mystras, Ioannina, Skopje..."

Constantine spoke more and more quietly.

"We still have Belgrade to go. That's enough for today."

Isabella sighed and held her son in her arms.

"You will become the emperor of the entire empire in the future, so you must study and recite from a young age. Your Latin is good enough, but you will have to learn Russian and Arabic in two weeks. Do you understand?"

"European nobles should be able to speak many languages. Your grandmother knows three, your grandfather knows four, and your father is the best. He is proficient in four, can speak five, and can understand eight. You can't fall behind!"

Isabella warned.

"You must be proficient in Greek and Latin, you must be able to speak Arabic and Russian, and Turkic and French will depend on the situation."

Constantine nodded with a grimace and looked towards his mother.

"When will father come back?"

"Soon, the Tatars can't beat him."

Isabella thought about this and sighed.

"He is so good, running around outside all day, leaving all the political affairs to me!"

"Where's Grandfather?"

Constantine asked again.

"He is in charge of fort construction and phosphate mining in North Africa. He will have more important things to do in the future and will not be able to come back for a while."

Isabella thought for a moment.

"If you are free these days, go and stay with Carlos. Remember, no matter what time, you are brothers and my sons!"

Constantine was startled by his mother's sudden seriousness and nodded quickly.

"Why do you say that, what happened to Carlos?"

Isabella touched Constantine's head and didn't say anything.

"You have your destiny, and he has his."

The wooden door opened and a maid walked in.

"Your Majesty, the envoy from Castile requests a meeting!"

"Who's coming?"

Isabella asked.

"The Count Gonzalo has arrived, and there is another man who claims to be the Count of Cordoba."

Isabella's eyes moved and she nodded.

"Go and get Carlos. I'll meet them in the council chamber!"

Putting down the documents, Isabella took Constantine through the corridor and arrived at the brightly lit meeting room.

After a while, the maid came over with Carlos.

"Mother, brother."

Carlos called out, then silently walked aside and stood next to Constantine.

"Alonso, Count of Cordoba!"

"Gonzalo, Count of Samsun!"

After two chants, Alonso and Gonzalo came up and bowed to Constantine, who was sitting at the head.

"Long time no see, Alonso."

Isabella looked at Alonso, her face calm.

"May God bless you, my Queen."

Alonso bowed again to Isabella.

"It's been a while since I last saw you. You look completely different now."

"Believe me, if your brother had imprisoned you for more than a decade, you wouldn't be in good spirits either."

Isabella said calmly.

"You don't have to. We all don't like King Enrique."

Alonso made his point clear.

"Can I meet Prince Carlos?"

Isabella looked towards Carlos, who hid beside his brother, unwilling to come forward.

"Go, Carlos, Count Alonso is our mother's nephew and our cousin."

Constantine nudged Carlos.

"You are right, we are still relatives."

Alonso smiled, walked forward, half-knelt down, and looked at Carlos.

Carlos also looked at him silently, his eyes calm.

"Your Highness, can you speak?"

Alonso asked tentatively.

Carlos didn't speak or move.

"He will say that, according to our previous agreement, the mother tongue is Latin, which I taught myself."

Isabella explained.

"Alonso, just tell me, what happened?"

Alonso stood up and returned to the center of the hall.

"Your Majesty, Enrique is sick and crazy. Castile is in chaos."

"Not long after you married and arrived in Constantinople, Enrique drove Queen Joana out of the court and then officially divorced her because our queen had several illegitimate children, all of which were proven to be irrefutable."

"We thought Enrique would remarry to see if he could give birth to a legitimate heir, but he didn't, and continued to fool around with a group of men."

Alonso looked away in disgust.

"Now, most of the nobles are completely disappointed in him and are unwilling to recognize the inheritance rights of their illegitimate daughter Juana. They advocate inviting an heir from abroad."

"These nobles are divided into two factions, the Ferdinand faction and the Carlos faction. The Ferdinand faction advocates that Prince Ferdinand of Aragon inherit the throne of Castile, while the Carlos faction hopes to invite your second son Carlos to be crowned."

"We southern nobles have little interest in Aragon. Most of us are Carlos. We also signed an agreement when Trastamara split up. The two branches did not interfere with each other. Ferdinand is not worthy of being our king."

"However, it is impossible to defeat Ferdinand and Juana by our own strength. I hope you can prepare for war as soon as possible."

Alonso finished speaking, and a faint smile appeared on Isabella's face.

"I am the daughter of the previous king. If Enrique is gone, I will be the first heir."

"But I'm already married, and you probably won't be willing to accept the Queen of the Eastern Empire as king."

"Then, my son Carlos is the most legitimate king of Castile. No one can question this!"

Alonso listened quietly without saying anything. Carlos certainly had the right to claim it, but in terms of legitimacy... he was still far from it.

However, since they all have the right to claim, they have to compete in strength. Whoever has the bigger fist will be the legitimate king.

"So what are you going to do?"

Alonso asked.

"I will inform the two emperors of this matter, but His Majesty Isaac probably already knows about it."

Isabella said.

"Emperor Isaac is presiding over affairs in Africa, including the logistics of the Andalusian War."

"Justinian is also about to end the war and go to Carthage."

"We will soon launch a war against the Kingdom of Granada through the British Fortress and seize the crown of Granada that my son Carlos deserves."

Isabella stood up and looked at Alonso.

"At that time, I need you to launch an uprising and invite Carlos to become the King of Castile in the form of a noble meeting. We will abide by the agreement and accept all your conditions."

Alonso was stunned. He really didn't expect Isabella's approach to be so violent. She didn't even intend to negotiate, but directly sent troops to start a war.

"Don't worry about the church. The current Pope is Carlos' godfather, and the Rovere family still owes us a large sum of money."

Seeing Alonso hesitate, Isabella continued.

"Granada is not an obstacle. You will definitely have a share of their land."

"Once we eliminate the traitors, their land will belong to you."

Alonso was a little moved and thought about it.

Gonzalo calmly made faces at Constantine and seemed to have no interest in Castile's affairs.

"If you are willing to pledge allegiance to my son now, the Cordoba family will become the largest noble family in the United Kingdom of Castile and Granada, and the hereditary prime minister of the kingdom."

Isabella said slowly.

"How about the title of 'Kingmaker' Alonso?"

Isabella smiled.

"Your Majesty, Enrique is not dead yet, and my oath to him is still valid..."

Alonso's Adam's apple throbbed.

"He is not worthy of being king. Are you going to keep your oath to a madman and sodomite to the end?"

Isabella shook her head contemptuously.

"You must have visited Constantinople along the way and should know our strength."

"We have money. Even if we rely entirely on mercenaries, it is enough to wear down Juana's and Ferdinand's factions."

"The Portuguese are not our enemies, and the French and Aragonese are not our opponents."

As time passed, Isabella was not prepared to say anything more and waited quietly for Alonso's answer.

After a while, Alonso finally made up his mind, gritted his teeth, walked towards Carlos, lifted his cloak, knelt on one knee, drew his sword, and stuck it on the ground.

"king!"

(End of this chapter)